Highland Fling
by FeliciaMaplewood
Summary: Lee receives a wake-up call when Billy assigns Amanda to work with a visting MI 5 agent. Set in Season 3 - prior to Over the Limit.
1. Chapter 1

"Scarecrow, my office

_Set in Season Three – Just Before __Over the Limit._

_Synopsis: _Lee gets a wake-up call when Billy assigns Amanda to work with a visiting agent.

_Disclaimers and Caveats: Scarecrow and Mrs. King_ was created by Brad Buckner and Eugenie Ross-Leming, and is a production of Shoot The Moon Enterprises, in conjunction with Warner Bros. Studios. Shoot The Moon Enterprises, Ltd. is owned by Kate Jackson. _Scarecrow and Mrs. King_ was filmed at the Burbank Studios and surrounding areas in Burbank, California. Stock footage filmed in Washington, D.C. during the first season. Regrettably, I do not own the characters, but I did take them out for a spin. Also very regrettably, I will not receive any remuneration – this was just for fun.

Excerpts and paraphrasing from Filming Raul – Written by Rudolph Borchert. References to There Goes the Neighborhood – Written by Brad Buckner and Eugenie Ross-Leming.

**Highland Fling – Chapter one**

"Scarecrow, my office! Now!" barked Billy Melrose from his office door.

Lee Stetson turned from the computer printout spilling over the desk to see a graceful figure in pastels, quietly excuse herself from Billy's office. "Sir, I really think...," she said turning toward her superior.

"That's all right, Mrs. King. I'll take it from here," Billy's tone downshifted to the gentle, genial tones he reserved primarily for his favorite civilian aide.

Amanda sighed, worry wrinkling her forehead. She bit her lip and nodded as she quietly exited the bullpen without looking at Lee.

"Trouble in paradise?" intoned Francine with a sarcastic bent.

"Button it, Francine...I'm not in the mood!" snapped Lee. Francine merely lifted her eyebrow in inquiry as Scarecrow took long strides across the room to face the music in Billy's office.

"Look, Billy, I had every reason in the world to ream out Amanda," Lee strode in and swept his hand out forcefully as he began to make his case.

"How interesting, Amanda didn't mention it." Billy responded, "Sit!"

Lee rested his lean length on the back of one of Billy's two office chairs. Billy barked once again, "I didn't say 'Rest', I said 'Sit!'," pointing to the seat. Lee's lips tightened as he gingerly lowered himself into the chair. It was going to be one of those meetings, he could tell.

"Why are you so all-fired pleasant with Amanda and you treat me like a badly trained puppy?" Lee groused, raking his hand through his hair.

The section chief planted both fists on his desk and leaned forward, "Mrs. King brings out the best in me, Lee. Do you know why?" Not allowing Lee to respond, Billy continued, "I give orders...she says 'Yes, sir!' - no matter now tedious or how challenging, she agrees. Then, she leaves here and - Get this novel concept - she follows orders. At least as long she as she is able to do so without interference from operatives who should know better!" As his tirade went on, Billys voice increased in volume and stridency until he all but deafened his senior agent. Heads turned in the bullpen to monitor the conflict.

"Billy, I...," Lee began.

"Did not follow orders this morning!" Billy finished. He was on a roll now. "Perhaps you do not consider them orders, but rather gentle suggestions for how you should spend your days, Scarecrow? That will change. Pronto! Understood?"

Lee cautiously nodded. There were times to pick your battles with Billy, but this was not one of them.

"Despite your 'assistance' this morning, which nearly blew her cover. Mrs. King was able to get the message from the MI 5 courier. Ian Fraser will be arriving from London tomorrow. We will be working on a mission in concert with MI 5 and that will be our top priority for the next week, at least."

"Ian's coming here? I thought he was behind a desk now." Lee responded quizzically.

"His being here gives us some idea of how high a priority this mission is, Lee." Billy replied heavily. "They've lost three of their agents already."

"What time do I pick him up?" Lee asked.

"You don't. I've assigned Amanda as his partner and she already has her orders to pick him up tomorrow. You'll be working with Francine." Billy replied with finality.

Lee sputtered, "Amanda?...You've assigned Amanda as his partner? Billy, just how important a priority do you think this mission is anyway?"

Billy glared at the younger agent, "I have rather more faith in her abilities than you do, apparently. Out, Scarecrow, now!" He spat as he pointed to the door. "Perhaps you can finish that report I ordered from you this morning, unless you think you have something more important to do?" Billy's voice rang with an irony that belied the firm expectation that, this time, Scarecrow would comply.

Lee shot from the office and across to his desk, slapping a manila file open. Francine looked at him and opened her mouth, then thought better of it. She turned to gaze at her section chief through the glass walls of his office to see him lean back and rub both hands over his face. Billy then reached for his bottle of antacids in his top left desk drawer. Another day in paradise, indeed.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Francine Desmond knew that there was more than one way to skin a cat. With barely suppressed curiosity, she headed out of the bullpen at a staccato clip on her three inch heels. Amanda had been heading for the break room, she was sure of it. The only way to keep ahead in this office was to always know what was going down. Information is power, she reasoned.

Swinging into the break room, she was surprised to see Amanda sitting with her head down, hunched over the lamentable brew that passed for coffee in the office. Amanda glanced up in surprise at the blonde powerhouse's arrival, not bothering to put on the amenable face she always displayed in the office. Her fingers curled more tightly around the coffee mug, "Was there something you wanted, Francine?" Amanda's voice was uncharacteristically flat and her face impassive.

Francine prided herself on cracking the toughest operatives to gain the secrets they hid. She doubted any housewife from Arlington would be a match for her skills. "No, of course not!" Francine lied, as she sauntered behind Amanda to fill a mug for herself of the tepid, tar like brew. She added cream and three sugar packets to make it more palatable. She lazily stirred the coffee and tilted her head to the side and turned to Amanda, "Tough day at the office?"

Amanda kept her gaze focused down to the table "I've had better," she replied tightly.

"Just what was Scarecrow on about back in the bullpen?" Francine jerked her head toward the door, referring back to the blistering set-down she had heard Lee giving Amanda as they entered the bullpen in the late morning. She slid into a seat facing Amanda.

"Nothing important, Francine." Amanda sighed, leaning back and closing her eyes. She would rather pretend the disagreement had never happened, but it was difficult to do with an eager audience for gossip fodder.

"Amanda, don't tell me you think you'll get off that easily," Francine laughed. "It's all anyone is talking about this afternoon."

"I'm sure." Amanda replied wryly, taking a sip and grimacing. "A quick synopsis, then, and you'll move on to another victim?" She asked, briefly glancing up.

Francine pouted at the barb, but decided to let it slide in the interest of expediency. "Do tell...," she purred.

"It's not all that complicated, Francine. Billy asked me to go to the florist on Delaney Way to pick up a message this morning. I headed out and had the feeling someone was tailing me. I doubled back twice and couldn't shake him, but I couldn't get a good look either. So I took my time along the shops, 'window shopping', --just trying to get a good look at the person reflected in the glass. I was running really late for the pickup when I realized who had been tailing me...," Amanda trailed off.

"Who was it? It can't be any of Rostov's crew, we've cleaned them all up...Do you think it was KGB?" Francine thought aloud.

"It was Lee, Francine!" Amanda was clearly exasperated. "Apparently he doubted that I could make a clean pickup and was tailing me to provide cover. He only succeeded in scaring me half to death!" Amanda was clearly irritated at the memory. "So the row started in the cab ride home from the pickup and continued all the way into IFF."

"Just what was he so upset about anyway?" Francine loved being the first to learn the airing of dirty laundry.

"Oh you name it, Francine, you know how he can be...He was angry that I continued to go to the pickup when I knew I was being tailed. He was upset that I let myself be a 'sitting duck' staring into shop windows. Then, he was mad that I almost blew the pickup by being so late." Amanda rolled a paper napkin tightly into a ball, squeezing it in tandem with her description. She realized that she was making a cardinal error in sharing her frustration with Francine, of all people. Francine looked entirely too delighted at Amanda's misfortune. She let out a short, forceful breath of frustration. "So that's it, Francine. You have the full scoop." Amanda stood and began abruptly clearing her place. She turned and set to washing her mug carefully at the sink, before placing it back on the rack.

"What did Billy have to say about all this?" Francine inquired, not having read that the winds were changing during this verbal storm.

"Then I guess you'll just have to ask Billy, Francine. I have work to do." Amanda wiped her hands together briskly and was clearly done with the coffee, the conversation, and the memories that went with them. She strode out of the office without bothering to look back at Francine as she headed off to pick up more tapes for transcription. Had she looked back, she would have derived a measure of satisfaction at the shocked, open-mouthed visage of Francine Desmond. Francine slowly traced the top of her coffee mug with her index finger. Apparently, Amanda King had a temper and claws, after all. Who would have known?

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Billy looked through the plate glass walls to the left of his desk and saw Amanda returning to the bullpen. She walked with quiet dignity to the desk she had been using and slipped on her headphones, preparing to engage in another long grueling session of transcription. Her outward calm was a marked contrast to her partner. Lee's eyes darted over periodically to assess Amanda; he appeared more tense than ever when faced with her cool oblivion.

Billy's eyes slid across the room to take in the Scarecrow pounding away on his keyboard as if the computer had done him a personal injury. There really was no better way to reprimand Lee Stetson than to force him to sit behind a desk facing a mountain of paperwork rather than being out in the field. It's a pity it was such a waste of his talents. Amanda ably halved that mountain on a regular basis, not that Scarecrow ever appeared to notice. What was he going to do with the two of them?

Perhaps this latest attempt of his would bring about a resolution. Ironically, it was Amanda herself who unwittingly provided him with a solution. He thought back on their conversation an hour earlier. She had, on his request, described the pickup that morning. As usual, she was downplaying the conflict with her partner and made sure she said nothing to incriminate Scarecrow. Billy could read between the lines. Hell, he heard Scarecrow lambasting the poor woman all the way into the bullpen. Billy sighed, Lee had a notoriously short fuse, but the only person who could light it without fail was the blameless, diffident Mrs. King.

How could Lee be so blind to her ability and her instincts, he wondered. Historically, Lee had been great with his green agents when showing them the ropes. What was so different about Amanda? Billy enjoyed Amanda, even when he became lost in her convoluted explanations. She was unfailingly gracious, even in the face of Francine's spiteful comments. She was prompt, courteous, efficient, and...fearless. Amanda had come through some of the most harrowing moments any of his agents had ever faced, usually brushing it off with a shrug and a half-smile while gamely facing the next day's challenge. Amanda had a great ability to read people. They opened up to her and shared their personal stories openly in the face of her compassionate and attentive presence. If her solutions to problems and mishaps were unconventional, then she was certainly no different than her partner himself. Scarecrow had given him an ulcer over the years with his unconventionall solutions.

Mrs. King had a life. That life outside the agency gave her a perspective and skills they badly needed. What's more, he truly enjoyed hearing about that 'normal' life. It kept him grounded and made him realize that was the very reason they were there, day in and day out, facing impossible odds and uncertain chances. It was to keep those normal lives just as they were: school plays, little league games, potluck suppers, and PTA meetings. Their jobs kept all those people able to live the lives they were meant to lead. Amanda was his touchstone for that real life most days. He often sought that normalcy as they wound up their time together.

Today, she had been relating her latest go around with her boys Jamie and Philip. "Well, sir, next time, I think they'll know better than to eat chocolate brownies for dinner and stay up until two before a ball game the next morning!"

"Did you really let them eat only chocolate and stay up as late as they wanted?" He laughed, "What on earth possessed you?"

She laughed in response, "Well it certainly wasn't easy waking Jamie up at 6:30 a.m. and reminding him he had to pitch today! I thought Philip was going to fall asleep in the outfield! I just got so tired of battling with them about the obvious. Sometimes, sir, the best punishment is to give them exactly what they think they want."

Billy paused to let that sentence sink in. Once again, Mrs. King had nailed it. He knew what he had to do.

"Mrs. King...about that MI 5 agent, Ian Fraser...," he began.

"Yes, sir?"

"I would like you to be his partner on this mission. He will be briefing us all tomorrow afternoon. I'd like you to pick him up at Dulles at 1:30 p.m.. The recognition code is 'I hear the traffic is unbearable today' and the response is 'only for those that mind it too much'. Ian's photo is in this file, but you can't miss him. He's the one who is 6 ft. 6 in. with a Scottish burr wider than the Potomac, or perhaps I should say the Clyde! You two should do well together."

"Oh, but sir, I am so used to working with Lee...I feel funny...," she quivered.

"Amanda, are you questioning my orders?" he replied firmly.

"Oh, no, sir, but...are you...," she began again.

"Yes, Amanda, I'm sure," he reassured her. "I have my reasons."

"Very well, sir." She gathered the file, her sweater and purse without making eye contact. He rose to escort her out, before calling the Scarecrow in.

Billy had taken in her just punishment of the boys. "Sometimes the best punishment of all is to give them exactly what they think they want." How many times had Scarecrow asked him to work solo or at least be partnered with a professional? Billy almost smiled to himself. He was going to enjoy this.

.


	2. Chapter 2

On arrival at the airport, Amanda glanced around the concourse at the flux of arriving passengers

On arrival at the airport, Amanda glanced around the concourse at the flux of arriving passengers. None fit the description or picture she had from the file. She glanced at her watch and the Arrivals board. He should be here anytime now. She stood on tiptoe and craned her head to look over the people in front of her. "Oh my Gosh," she whispered. The pictures hadn't conveyed the man.

Ian Fraser strode down the concourse with all the patience of a tightly leashed lion. Eight hour plane flights with cramped seating didn't agree with his frame or his temper. He sighed and raked his gaze over the people waiting on the arrivals. He hoped his contact would make his move soon. As he paused, he felt a slight figure collide with him and his garment bag slipped off his shoulder and onto the ground.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry! I just wasn't looking where I was going. You know, my mother always says "Amanda, God put eyes in the front of your head for a reason!" Maybe I should start listening to her, but you know at my age it's hard to keep listening to your mother for every little thing. Oh, are you OK? I didn't hurt you did I? Well, what a way to welcome someone to Washington. You know, you may just want to turn around and go and get back on your plane...I hear the traffic is unbearable today." Amanda paused for breath and looked up into the face of her erstwhile contact handing his garment bag back to him.

It couldn't be. This delicate chatterbox with a cloud of curly dark hair framing a face dominated by almond shaped brown eyes - she could not be his Agency contact. Yet, she looked up at him with such urgency...

"Come lass, dinna fret. A wee thing like yerself couldn't hurt me. And as for the traffic, you know what they say. It can be unbearable, but only for those who mind it." He carefully assessed her face as he grasped her elbow to stabilize her.

Amanda closed her eyes in relief. She had made contact. Opening her eyes, she afforded him a blinding smile. "Well, the least I can do is help you find your way...Have you been to Washington before?" She asked him and inclined her head toward the exit.

She moved a rapid clip on long, graceful legs - one of the few women he had met who could keep up with his stride. As they exited, she kept up an incessant chatter all the way to the parking lot. He climbed into the car, and turned to gaze bemused at this unconventional agent.

"I'm sorry...I always talk more when I'm nervous. I was afraid I would miss you...I mean, I don't know how I could miss you - they gave me your picture and all...," Amanda blushed as she realized that what she just said could have been taken amiss. She let out a short forced breath and held out her hand. "I'm Amanda King with the Agency. Mr. Melrose is having us work together. How do you do?" Oh, why did this have to feel so very awkward, she wondered.

"My pleasure, Amanda. I'm Ian. Thank you for meeting me." His mouth quirked up in a wry one-sided smile as his hand engulfed hers in a handshake.

"Shall we go to your hotel?" Amanda asked before hastily correcting herself, "I mean... you know... would you like me to take you there so you can check in...by yourself...and go to bed...I mean get some sleep ...or rest...you know...," She could feel the blush crawling up her cheeks.

"No, lass, but thank you...we can head straight to the Agency." Ian's low voice rumbled with well-meant laughter.

"OK, then...well let's go...," Amanda pulled her wagon out of the airport into traffic and lapsed into silence. How much more could she have embarrassed herself, she wondered. She would have happily had the seat swallow her up entirely. There was something about Ian Fraser that just plain rattled her. She took furtive glances at him as she drove. He was a lanky man, with a well-built frame. Black tousled hair brushed his collar and swept over his brow. His face was comprised of angles with high cheekbones and a strong chin. Dark, intent eyes roved the streets, but his thoughts were far away.

He pulled his thoughts back in and glanced over at his pretty companion. "I don't recall meeting you the last time I was here...Are you new to the Agency?" His burr made the cadence of his speech fascinating.

"Yes, well...I've just been there part-time...just about two years now." she responded, glancing in her rearview mirror ...anywhere but at the man who sat next to her.

"And how did a fair lass like you end up in a business like this?" He inquired.

She laughed quietly at the memory..."Well this agent caught me at the train station and begged me to give a package to a man on a train with a red hat...," and she related the rest of the story of how she became involved in agency business. He was an attentive listener and she gradually found herself beginning to relax in his presence.

"I might have known it would be Lee who found you...he's always had an eye for the ladies," Ian smiled.

"Do you know Lee, then?" Amanda asked.

"Aye...it's been a few years though. My wife Fiona was good friends with his Dorothy. Fiona was an agent, too." Ian clenched his hands once and glanced out the window.

"Your wife...?" Amanda began.

"Died two years ago...On a mission I assigned to her. She was a fine agent, and a better wife." Ian's face tightened into a drawn mask.

"I'm so sorry...I can't imagine...," Amanda responded quietly.

"She did what she loved to do. I knew that...and I knew that loving her meant understanding that...After all, it's what we are and what we do, right?" he turned to Amanda at a traffic light.

Her eyes were caught by the raw pain in his and she laid her right hand over his. "I know...but that doesn't make it any easier." Her voice cracked as she felt a wave of empathy for the brawny agent next to her.

They shifted to more prosaic topics and completed the drive to the Agency. She shared stories her life following her divorce, raising her two sons and her mother's interference with her love life with rueful humor. By the time they pulled into the Agency parking lot, she felt a deeper connection with this stranger than some of the people she had worked with for two years. Perhaps she could manage with a new partner, after all, she thought with surprise.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

"Are you sure your information source is accurate?" Lee asked Ian leaning over the schematic draped over Billy's desk. He was more abrupt than he meant to be. Lee was uncomfortable with Amanda's partnering the Scottish MI 5 agent, but reluctant to admit it even to himself. He felt the tension as they all were cramped in Billy's office.

"One of my best agents died getting it to me, Lee. I would stake my life on what he said," Ian replied bleakly. He leaned against the closed door, fatigue finally taking its toll. "Alastair was confident that Scarlet Omen was going to steal the new HCRT-3-9 explosive to blow up the oil rigs off the north coast of Scotland. It is the only explosive which will bond under water in the frigid temperatures up there. It will disrupt the oil supply, cause an environmental nightmare, and make us completely dependent on foreign oil."

Francine traced a finger over shipping lines on the chart as she hummed thoughtfully to herself. "They could probably get close just from one of these shipping barges," she thought aloud.

"Aye," Ian replied, "there's no way to completely secure the rigs - we can only secure the explosive. My intelligence said there would be an attempt here at your labs where it was developed."

Lee looked up with an intent gaze, "Trust us, Ian, we won't let it happen - not here."

Ian nodded, but looked down as he thrust his hands in his pockets. Amanda bit her lip as she watched him worry.

Billy wound up a conversation on the phone with his superiors before turning to the group.

"We'll give you all the support you need, Cyclone. You have priority A1 status." Billy scanned the group. "Francine, see if we have any chatter on this HCRT-3-9 explosive. Cross-index with other agencies, see if they've heard of this Scarlet Omen faction and if there are any known players."

He turned to Lee "Cover the lab in Bethesda and make sure their security measures are tight. We don't need to replay any of our history there."

He faced Amanda seated in the corner..."And Amanda, get this man back to his hotel. He's asleep on his feet. I'll need you back here bright and early tomorrow." He pinned Ian with a glare "You get that rest, man. You're no good to us without a good night's sleep. We need you on the top of your game. All right people...Move!" and pointed to the door.

Ian held open the door as Francine darted through "Nice to see you, Frankie..," He grinned as she glared back at him. He could always get a rise out of her. It was one of his great pleasures in life.

Amanda passed quickly by Lee without making eye contact. She quietly began fussing about Ian, urging him to pack up to head back to the hotel. Lee watched her rest her hand on Ian's shoulder as she urged him to look at her. With minor complaints, the tall man allowed her to maneuver him to the elevator. Lee felt a sharp stab of surprised regret as Amanda devoted her attention to the towering agent. He shook it off. He had his own work to do, and after all, he preferred to do it alone.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Amanda finished up the dishes in her kitchen as she listened to the habitual patter of her sons squabbling as they went upstairs. "OK - Fellas - get a move on...It's already 10 minutes past your bed time," she called over her shoulder.

Dotty sighed, "I'll follow them and make sure they don't get lost up there." She kissed her daughters cheek, "I have a date with a soft mattress and a good mystery," as she held up a racy potboiler and headed for the stairs.

Amanda laughed, "G'night Mother!" she called out. She gasped aloud as she turned around to see Lee through her kitchen windows. Her heart picked up its beat. What on earth was he doing here, she wondered? She dried her hands and headed for the back door.

"Lee?" she whispered as she headed out back, "is everything alright?"

Lee gazed at her and fully saw her for the first time in quite a long while. At the end of the day, she still looked fresh and pressed in a white shirt tucked into blue jeans. Her manner was no different than it had been each other time he had come to her back door. For once, his urbanity fled and he wasn't sure if he knew the right thing to say.

"I guess that's why I'm here...to see if everything is alright," he glanced at her, hesitating, before looking away.

"What do you mean, Lee?" Amanda asked as she slid into place at her picnic table. Lee gazed at her and shifted uncomfortably. He began to pace.

He faltered as he began his apology, "Look, well, I know I was hard on you yesterday...I may have overreacted, a little." He spun around to face her, "but you could have really gotten hurt if I had been an enemy agent! Amanda...I was worried about you!"

"I know that, Lee," she sighed looking down. Why could she never stay mad at this man? What did he want from her anyway?

Lee slid into the seat facing her. "Then why did you ask for a new partner?" his voice was raspy as his hazel eyes stayed intent on her face.

"I didn't!" she exclaimed, looking up at him in surprise. "Mr. Melrose insisted...I assumed he told you. After yesterday, I rather think he was respecting your wishes," she looked away. "Maybe it's for the best, Scarecrow. I think it's time I learned to work with other agents. Ian and I seem to be getting along...," her voice trailed off.

"Yes, well I certainly saw that!" Lee bit off, looking up and away. "You couldn't do enough for him, could you?"

"I beg your pardon?" Amanda responded with rising inflection.

"He's not your type, Amanda." Lee stated with authority, "And honestly, if you think otherwise, he's probably just trying to make a point to compete with me. Cyclone has always loved attention from the ladies."

"I see, well, isn't that the pot calling the kettle black?" Amanda looked at him with a crooked smile that didn't reach her eyes. "First of all, Ian is simply my temporary partner. But you're saying that if a man pays attention to me, then it could never be based on my own charms, but only because he has a score to settle with you." Her voice cracked, "I don't know what to say, Lee. Either you have a mighty high opinion of yourself or a very low one of me. You might be surprised to find some men do find me attractive," her voice had an ironic twist of wounded pride he had never heard before. Amanda placed her hands flat on the table and pushed herself up into a standing position. "I think you've said enough for one evening, Scarecrow. You know your way out." She went inside.

Lee watched in startled surprise as Amanda shut the door firmly behind her and turned off the kitchen light. He rubbed his face with both hands as he tried to assess just where he started to go wrong with Amanda tonight. He had only meant to set things right and apologize. He needed to know that even if they weren't working together, that she was okay...that she would...forgive him.

His mental dialogue continued as he walked to the silver Corvette and slung himself in the drivers seat. Where did she get off with that crack about whether or not she was attractive? He damn well knew she was attractive; she did things to his pulse without even trying that any woman would envy. And he did not have a 'mighty high opinion of himself' either, he was just giving her a friendly warning, he reasoned. He started the ignition and hit the gas pedal a little too hard. Ah hell, he knew better. He didn't want Amanda within twenty feet of Ian Fraser. He just didn't want to analyze why.

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --


	3. Chapter 3

Over the next three days, Amanda and Ian developed their own synchrony of working together as they attempted to narrow down po

Over the next three days, Amanda and Ian developed their own synchrony of working together as they attempted to narrow down potential threats to the HCRT - 3-9. In many ways, they worked well as a team. She had the attention to detail and he could see the big picture. It wasn't as intuitive and automatic as working with Lee - she couldn't complete his sentences and thoughts the way she could with Lee...but it wasn't altogether bad, either. He seemed unaware of her lowly status as a civilian aide and often sought her advice and opinions, which was disconcerting. And his manners were delightful...Ian had an intent gaze when he spoke with you that made you feel you were the only person in the world worth listening to. He brought her a cup of tea each mid-morning and afternoon.

Over lunch, he related each failure and embarrassing moment of his early days as an agent, which put her at her ease with her recent mistakes in the field. She could even begin to laugh at herself.

"Dinna fash yerself, Amanda. I've read your files. You've done some fine thinking on your feet. In this business, that's the name of the game," Ian reassured her, taking a sip of ice water.

She leaned back in her chair and sighed. "Why are you heading up this case? I was under the impression that you do the same work as Mr. Melrose...I would have expected one of your agents...," she tilted her head and asked tentatively.

"I guess this one is personal," he replied soberly. "Scarlet Omen was the organization that my wife, Fiona, was investigating when she was killed. She was in a warehouse they had mined with explosives...I sent her on that mission, Amanda...It haunts me," his rolled r's became more pronounced as his voice roughened with emotion. "They know what many of our agents look like, now...but I've been out of the field for seven years. They may have heard of me, but wouldn't know to look for me. No one expects administrators to be a threat, ye ken?" The ironic smile was back.

Cyclone was a perfect codename for him, she reflected. The man was a tightly wound storm of energy and contained emotions. He face and voice shifted like quicksilver as he spoke. It was hard to picture such a passionate man behind a desk.

"Do you prefer to be in the field?" she asked.

Ian shrugged, "It's hard to say, Amanda. I like the work - I like working with you!" He gave her a quick broad smile. "But, Billy and I get to see the big picture. It's different, but ye still know ye're making a difference." He paused, "I want to thank ye, Amanda, ye've done more than anyone could ask without complaints these past few days. And ye've made it a pleasure, as well." He lifted her hand and pressed a quick kiss into her palm.

Amanda blushed and her palm tingled. It was nice to be appreciated and to be treated like a woman, too. Her confidence was growing under his steady regard. While he wouldn't be her heart's first choice, she would be a fool not to notice how appealing he was. Perhaps, it wouldn't hurt to let herself stretch and spread her wings more. She wasn't dead, yet - and a woman would have to be dead not to take a second look at the view across her lunch table.

"Tell me about Scotland," she prompted as they left the restaurant.

He described the stark beauty of the West Highlands, the majesty of Edinburgh, and the fine golfing in St. Andrews. But, as was Ian's wont, humor won out. He complained of the diet of his youth being mostly potatoes - roasted potatoes, mashed, 'riced' potatoes, fried potatoes...potatoes with mashed turnips...the list went on as he made her laugh all the way back to the office.

At the end of day four, she slid into the cubicle they shared and left a neatly wrapped gift for her new partner. Ian carefully crossed the bullpen balancing two cups of tea and perched on the edge of the desk next to her. He handed her a cup of tea and glanced at the package. He lifted his eyebrow at the tag, "For me?" he inquired. With his lips quirked up in that one-sided smile, he deftly un-wrapped the package and laughed aloud, holding it aloft.

"I didn't want you to be homesick!" she joked.

Lee looked across the bullpen to see Ian lean over to brush a light kiss across Amanda's lips while cradling a Mr. Potato Head. Lee scowled as Francine gazed on with a sour expression, as well. "It looks like Amanda is branching out into international relations," she quipped, then shrugged as Lee turned the scowl towards her. "I call 'em like I see 'em, Scarecrow...you know that!"

He did know that. Francine had the best dirt on everyone and their office relationships. If she was seeing something develop, it wasn't just his imagination. Damn it. Amanda was in over her head, whether she knew it or not. Before he had been married, Ian was just as much a red-blooded player as any other agent and with a dating history to rival Scarecrow's. For some reason, women found him and his damned accent irresistible, if the steno pool gossip and Francine's covert glances were anything to go by. Despite their shared history, Lee wanted to flatten the bastard.

Francine crossed the bullpen with a saccharine smile, "Much as I hate to break up the party with anything work related, I think we might have a lead."

Lee followed in her wake, maintaining a nonchalant air as he faced the new partners. "Interagency chatter was very revealing. My time at the lab indicated that there was a disgruntled lab tech who was recently let go. He had access to the HCRT-3-9. They reported that there is nothing missing, but this fellow Brian Holt knew chapter and verse about their methods and security. He has a meeting scheduled with Arden Blaich the day after tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. - somewhere near the Carousel over by the Smithsonian."

"Arden Blaich?" Amanda scanned the group looking for information.

"A cretin," Ian responded, "low-level arms dealer, always trying to make it one level higher."

"Mmm, Pond Scum. But look on the bright side, Amanda, maybe he's available to take you to dinner." Francine's smile dripped honeyed sweetness, but Amanda chose to ignore the barb.

"I'm afraid, Frankie, that Mrs. King is already engaged for dinner this evening," Ian responded, lacing his fingers with Amanda's free hand. Francine glared in response to the hated nickname and his championing the frumpy housewife.

"They won't recognize Amanda and chances are, won't know me. We can do the on-site surveillance, but we'll need back-up and a wire, just in case." Ian switched gears into the administrative role he knew so well. His tone brooked no nonsense, and then shifted as he referred back to Amanda. "So, partner, how shall we play it? Tourists, lovers, bickering spouses, joggers..."

Amanda made a face at the last one. "Tourists would be our safest bet, I think," she responded. Lee brightened when she didn't pick the second choice. "That way we can carry cameras easily," she finished.

"Mmm, your call," Ian deferred to his partner as Lee never would. "I think we can all knock off soon if we plan an early start tomorrow," he said dismissively to Francine and Lee. He turned back to Amanda, "What fine dining establishment that does not serve potatoes would you like to try tonight?" he asked her. Lee was startled, he hadn't been aware they had been spending so much time together.

"I'm sure there is something in the hotel dining room that doesn't feature your least favorite carbohydrate," she teased back. "But maybe they'll have turnips...," and Ian shuddered in response. Amanda laughed and picked up their cups to go wash them in the break room, Lee followed close on her heels.

"What are you, my shadow?" she asked him as she entered the abandoned break room and headed to the sink.

"Do you know what you're doing?" he asked abruptly.

"Washing dishes, I believe," she held up a soapy teacup.

"You know that's not what I mean...Just what is going on between you and Cyclone?" Lee voice was peremptory.

"Well, you're very curious today, Lee. Just what is it that you're trying to ask?" she looked over her shoulder at him. Her face was unreadable, and he thought he knew her every mood.

"Are you having an affair with Cyclone?" he rasped, gazing intently at her and thrusting his hands into his pockets to avoid using them to bodily shake her in his frustration.

"Am I...? What concern is it of yours anyway, Scarecrow?" she volleyed back, rinsing the dishes and putting them in the rack. She wiped her hands, and turned around folding her arms across her middle.

"Amanda, you're not the ...," he began.

"type to have a 'clandestine love affair.' I believe we had this conversation once before, Lee," she finished.

Lee had a vivid recollection of that conversation in the dimly lit car. Amanda's admissions had rocked him even then and put ideas in his head that didn't belong there. "_Well...you never really can tell whether someone is the type to have an affair. I mean, I'm not the type to be a spy, and look at me. I mean...you never really can tell...what somebody would do..."._ He had swept her into his arms for cover as a police patrol passed, and he could still feel the memory of the lingering pressure of her fingers caressing his cheek and her breath on his neck.

Amanda turned to face him, and gave him a crooked smile. "I'm a mother, Lee. I'm not a nun," her voice cracked slightly, as it often did during an emotional discussion. "What I do, who I see and where and when I see him isn't really your problem, now is it?"

"Amanda... he could break your heart," he warned her.

Amanda gave another crooked smile and then laughed outright. "My heart? Lee, a man I adored who swore to love me until I died changed his mind and left me. That broke my heart. And you know what? I survived. This isn't about my heart... I know Ian will be gone soon...maybe that's what makes it so perfect. I don't have to think about it when it's over. Out of sight, out of mind. Don't worry about me, Lee. I'm not your problem anymore." She hardly made eye contact with him and brushed past him to head back to the bullpen.

Lee remained a minute to compose himself. Why couldn't he and Amanda ever have a civil conversation anymore? Because you're jealous...a quiet voice whispered in his head. And you just hate the thought that when Amanda King was ready for an affair, she didn't turn to you. It didn't sit well with him. No matter what she said, Amanda was not the type for a casual affair without her heart involved. She never did anything without putting her full heart into it. It was one of the things he lov..., he liked about her. He raked his left hand through his hair and gripped the back of his neck. When did things get so complicated?

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

"That's a barbaric custom, ye ken," Ian shot back at Lee as he ordered his fifth scotch on the rocks, "Ye're ruinin' the flavor." His accent had thickened as he drank. Being a traditionalist, Ian had his scotch served neat so that the whiskey ran no chance of being watered. Francine and Amanda decided to stick with white wine for the evening, as they all gathered around a table in the hotel bar after dinner.

Amanda had been only mildly surprised to find that Ian had eventually included both Francine and Lee in their plans for the evening. She noted that Cyclone just loved to get a rise out of the very baitable Francine. And like a moth to a flame, Francine just couldn't stay away from him either. If Lee had eyes in his head, she mused, he would realize that no matter how attentive Ian had been to her, his true thoughts and aspirations lay with the tetchy blonde.

Lee had accepted the invitation without complaint. If he was near the two partners, he could make sure that Ian didn't get too far with his plans to inveigle Amanda into an affair. If he had to match Ian drink for drink until they were both legless, he would do it. That would surely spoil at least this evening's romantic plans. A hangover would be a small price to pay...Someday, Amanda would thank him, he assured himself. He took another healthy swallow. Ian was looking a little glassy eyed. Good.

For once, Francine and Amanda were fully on the same page as they looked at one another and rolled their eyes. Men could be such fools! The women didn't dare leave them to their own devices. With the disinhibition of alcohol, they were liable to take each other or the whole room apart. What a way to spend an evening, thought Francine, nursing her glass of verdichio. For all that, she had been having a surprisingly good time. She had to reluctantly admit that Amanda was more fun on an evening out than she would have given her credit for. And Ian...had been surprisingly nice. He was a funny raconteur and could mimic Billy and all the agents in the bullpen faultlessly. His impression of Fred Fielder was so on target; she had swallowed the wrong way.

She couldn't help contrast the two men as she sat at the table. They were both undeniably handsome, and charming, she had to allow. If Lee's face was sculpted from marble, then Ian's was hewn from granite. Ian's sheer size could intimidate, but what really did so was his intensity. Yet, she saw the sadness come in intermittent waves across his mobile face. It made her want to reassure him and make the world right for him again. She shook her head at the thought. Ruefully, she had to admit that she wasn't the one Ian was interested in.

"Think they've had enough?" Amanda whispered to Francine.

"Huh...more than enough!" replied Francine. "The question is how do we get the two lumbering oafs out of here?"

"Look, Lee will have kitten fits if I take Ian back to his room. Would you get Ian there? I can drive Lee home and pick him tomorrow so he can come back get his car here." Amanda suggested.

Francine smirked at the thought of Lee having 'kitten fits'. She had to admit a certain surprise that Amanda wasn't rubbing her conquest in Lee's face. Francine would have. But Amanda apparently hadn't ever read the code that all was fair in love and espionage. Give her time. She watched with amusement as Amanda reached into Lee's pocket with stealthy fingers and swiped his car keys. Her technique wasn't half bad; she must have been practicing with Leatherneck.

"All right, Fellas...time to pack it in." Amanda said with authority, pulling Scarecrow to a standing - or leaning- position. "Francine, you all set?"

"Oh yeah, I'll take care of the Flying Scotsman here," she snorted at Ian's injured expression.

Amanda oriented Scarecrow towards the exit and gave a gentle push. "See you tomorrow!" she called out over her shoulder.

"So she lef' me t' ye'r tender mercies, eh, Frankie?" Ian turned the full force of his intense gaze on Francine. She had a feeling that he wasn't as legless as Scarecrow, though still not in possession of all of his faculties.

"You wish, Ian!" she exclaimed dragging him to his feet as well. Her head just came to the tall agent's chest. "How tall are you anyway?" she asked as she wrapped her arm around his waist to get him to the elevator.

"Five eighteen," he responded innocently and she snorted again. He did have charm, she allowed.

Once she saw him to his room, Francine turned to leave. "Wait!" Ian said. "Thank ye, lass...", he bent down from his great height and tipped her face up in order to brush a gentle but firm kiss on her lips. Before she could say anything, he slipped into the room and shut the door. Francine stared at the closed door for a full minute with her fingertips pressed against her tingling lips. Who knew?

-- -- -- -- -- -- --

Amanda shook her head ruefully as she escorted Lee to his door and slipped the key in the lock. At least he was an amiable drunk. She had never fully bought his act when he was 'burned out', and had never really seen Scarecrow when he was not fully in control of his faculties...Well, hardly ever, as she recounted his various head injuries.

"To bed with you!" she gave him a gentle shove in the right direction.

"Amanda, I thought you'd never ask!" Lee riposted, turning his high wattage smile in her direction before he headed to bed.

"Funny, Lee, very funny..," Amanda smiled back as she saw him attempt to weave his way into the bedroom. He was hopeless, she thought, and followed him into the room.

She pushed his shoulders down until he sat heavily on the bed, then turned around to help him remove his shoes. He was truly feeling no pain, she thought untying his shoes.

Lee's gaze traced the slim contours of her hips and backside appreciatively. "Amanda, anyone ever tell you, you have a classy chassis?" he quipped resting his hand on her hip.

She could feel the heat rise in her cheeks as she turned back to face him. "Not in so many words...No." She didn't meet his eyes, but a small smile played around her mouth at the compliment. Boy, would he regret his words if he recalled them in the morning, she thought. She focused on pushing his suit jacket off his shoulders and wasn't receiving as much cooperation as she would have hoped.

"Stand up!" she ordered. Lee obeyed, if only to continue to feel Amanda running her hands over his torso as she struggled with the jacket. She smelled so good, he thought, like an outdoor flower market in the Riviera. She had her eyes intently focused on the knot of his tie as she pulled the silk knot loose and then unbuttoned his collar.

He incoherently registered that it was Amanda pressed close to him, Amanda undressing him..."Finally," he groaned, "Amanda...," and spanned her waist with his open hands, pulling her up and tight against the firmness of his body. He saw her startled glance and parted lips and then slanted his mouth over hers to take possession. A voice lingered in the back of his head reminding him that he shouldn't be doing this, he couldn't...He wasn't attracted to her...She wasn't his type...Oh Bull, he had wanted to do this since forever.

Amanda closed her eyes and was swept by a wave of heat and an ache of longing. She could taste the sharp bite of whiskey, but it wasn't that which intoxicated her. She gripped his arms tightly and let herself be swept away. She had wanted this for so long.

"Amanda...," he whispered as he traced kisses along her jaw and then her neck. She was so beautiful in her passion, with her eyes half-closed and her lips parted. "I shouldn't...I never meant to...," he drew her even more tightly to him, "But God help me, I want you so much!"

Her eyes widened in surprise. She had thought, perhaps, that he had confused her with one of his many lady friends. She was stunned to think that she, of all women, had attracted him. He was always so sure to remind her that their relationship was strictly business. Oh, it was so nice to be proven wrong! In whiskey veritas, he must really want her ...but then uncertainty crept in. She was here, in his bedroom, and with his apparently well-deserved reputation, perhaps she was just convenient.

He rested his forehead against hers, rubbing her back in a circular motion. "It's been killing me..," he admitted. His eyes were vulnerable as they searched her face..."just killing me that you would have an affair with Ian. Don't, Amanda, please...just...Don't...," he leaned in to kiss her again and drew her against him as they fell back onto his bed. He barely could register her weight as she lay on top of him. He sometimes forgot how slender and fragile she was. Yet there was a tensile strength in her arms as she pulled him back to her and kissed him lavishly. It was a welcome surprise to find so much passion under her carefully subdued image. But somehow, he had always known that passion would be there.

She pulled back to gaze into his hazel eyes. "Oh, Lee..," she whispered brokenly. Her heart was laid bare by his request and the uncertain look in his eyes. He wasn't any surer of the territory they were exploring than she was. She knew she had to put a halt to their lovemaking, though. By all the saints in heaven, if she and Lee were to make love she would be darn certain that he would remember it for the rest of his life, much less the following day. That wouldn't happen if it were colored by an alcohol haze. It was hard to convince her traitorous body, and she was sure that Lee would find it only too easy to seduce her. She could feel the fire of want as his hands swept over her body. The man deserved his reputation. He should come with a warning label!

"Lee," her voice cracked..."I'm so tired, it's been hard this week...,"she faltered. "Could you just hold me?"

Lee sighed and groaned, fighting the pull of his desire and the lure of exhaustion. He then pulled her to his side, resting her cheek against his shoulder and his face against her hair. Her hair was so soft. Lee breathed in her scent as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders, " 'Kay, baby...Jus' don't leave me, 'Manda...He won't make you happy, you know...", his voice drifted off.

"I know, Lee, I know," she whispered. She lay in his arms for a long while, content, and felt his breathing slow into a steady rhythm. She felt so comfortable, so protected. It was hard to convince herself that she needed to leave the warmth of his embrace. She carefully extricated herself from his arms and sidled out of the bed. His forehead creased in a frown, seeming to register her loss in his sleep. Amanda tiptoed to the bathroom, rifled through his medicine cabinet and shook out two aspirin from a bottle. She brought the pills to place them on his bedside table with a glass of water. He'd be needing that later, she thought ruefully.

She quietly crept out to the kitchen, prepared the coffeepot and left a note on the counter. It was an even bet whether he would get to the coffeepot before she arrived the following morning. She carefully let herself out of the apartment, then leaned with her back against the wall and hugged herself tightly as she waited for the elevator. What a night!

-- -- -- -- -- -- --

Damn, what a night..."Oh God, what on earth possessed me...," Lee moaned and bracketed his head with his hands. His head was throbbing and his stomach roiling. He was too old for this. He could recall sketchy images from the previous night. Ian's mocking laughter in the pub. The amber lights of the bar highlighting Amanda's hair...Francine looking nervously at Ian...Well, at least that was a first! He remembered his resolve to ruin any chance for Ian to have a private evening with Amanda. Someone had to protect her...But search as he might, he couldn't recall how he had gotten home and into bed. Damn, he hated that.

Whoever got him home had left aspirin to greet him in the morning. His stomach rebelled, but his headache demanded that he take them. He looked over at the unmussed bed. Whoever had brought him home hadn't stayed. Well, at least that simplified his morning. He lurched into the shower and tried to revive himself with the stinging water. It wasn't doing the trick...Coffee, he thought. Strong coffee, preferably intravenously. He turned off the water and toweled himself quickly. Tossing on his robe, he headed to the kitchen. God Bless, the coffee maker was filled and ready to go. He flipped the switch and then saw the note.

Amanda. His heart sank. It was Amanda who got him home last night. He racked his brain trying to extract more details. Lee rubbed his hand roughly over his face with impatience. Trying to find memories was like diving for pearls...He could recall Amanda's gently chiding him on the ride up the elevator, her intent face as she struggled with his tie...Oh God, he shivered as he recalled the feel of Amanda's hands running over his chest...What had he done?

Lee's head whipped around as he heard the doorbell ring. He knew who would be on the other side and he approached the front door with trepidation. Affecting nonchalance, he opened the door to face Amanda's customary sunny morning personality. It was one of her greatest faults, he mentally groused.

"You're up!" she commented cheerily. Amanda breezed into the room with a brown paper bag wrapped in her arms. She headed straight for the kitchen, nattering on as she unpacked the bag. "I know, I know...you don't like to eat breakfast. I figured you might need something to fortify you after the night you had." She hazarded a quick glance at Scarecrow's guarded face. "And I noticed last night that just like Old Mother Hubbard, your larder was completely bare...Not that it was a surprise to me, but really Lee, you should have just a few staples in the house."

She was a whirlwind of energy and chatter, he observed. Knowing Amanda as well as he did, he knew that meant she was nervous. "Amanda..," he began.

She whirled around a little two quickly and smiled a shade too brightly. "Blueberry muffin?" she offered, handing him a small white bakery bag.

Oh yeah, she was determined to keep him off topic. Lee closed the gap between them, his hand folding over hers. She took a rapid step back until she became wedged against the kitchen counter, her smile faltering as her breath caught. Yeah, something had happened last night. Amanda hadn't been this nervous around him in a very long time. "Amanda...Thank you for bringing me home last night..."

Amanda nodded once sharply and smiled tightly, "No problem...but we really should be getting going, Lee. We don't want to be late."

It was so like her, he thought. She would make it so easy to sweep this under the rug, but he had a feeling this time they just couldn't do that, not with the way things had been between them recently. "Amanda, I wasn't finished...Is there anything I should...apologize for... last night?" He spoke haltingly and scanned her face with a searching gaze.

Her eye contact broke, as she turned to the counter, beginning to wipe it down with a handy sponge. "Really, Lee...I don't know what you're talking about...," she faltered. 'Let this end'...she thought to herself. Could anything be more awkward? She knew he might not remember, but the reality stung. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. 'Didn't it just figure', she berated herself.

In their proximity in the kitchen, he caught a waft of her perfume...just like a flower market in southern France, he thought. Breathing it in, he suddenly recalled the softness of her hair and the satin of her skin. Damn, what had happened last night? The fragments of memory were unsettling him. He couldn't separate reality from his many dreams of her. What was this woman doing to him? But he knew Amanda, and pushing it right now wouldn't get him answers, anyway. He sighed, closing his eyes, unconsciously reaching to rub her arm.

What was it about this man, she wondered, that spoiled her for all the others? She could risk gazing at him, now that he wasn't looking at her. He could make her pulse race just by standing near her. She had to put some distance between them, because his friendly caress might mean nothing to him, but it brought back everything from the night before that had left her utterly sleepless and wound up tighter than a spring.

"Lee...are you going to eat breakfast...because we really need to get going," she reminded him.

Like a dog with bone... he shook his head. He would get nothing more from her until she was ready to talk. Amanda's tenacity was phenomenal. Lee sighed and put up his hands in defeat. "Just give me a minute to shave, OK?...And where is my car, anyway?"

Amanda smiled at that, they were getting back on normal footing. "I had to leave it at the hotel, I'll drop you there on our way to the agency. Um, I have an appointment...so if you're not eating breakfast...?" she trailed off.

"OK, OK...message duly noted." He headed off toward the bathroom. Lee faced himself in the mirror, reluctantly eyeing the signs of dissipation from a hard night's drinking. He lathered his face and called out over his shoulder, "What appointment?"

"I'm meeting Ian," she called from the other room.

Lee jerked and felt the bite of his razor as it cut his chin and he swore softly. He closed his eyes, finally having to admit to himself that he was jealous.

"Anything new regarding the HCRT -3-9 or Scarlet Omen?" he probed.

"No," Amanda's distant voice sounded exasperated. "Ian is just convinced he can improve my performance on the firing range and insisted we start there this morning." Amanda's reluctance to handle firearms and her poor aim was legendary at the agency. Ian didn't know it, but he was facing a lost cause.

Lee knew Amanda, better than anyone at the agency, he reasoned. Ian had just bit off more than he could chew. That gave Scarecrow more than an ounce of satisfaction. He saw his tight smile reflected in the mirror, but it didn't reach his eyes.

-- -- -- -- -- -- --

"Try not to hold your breath. You'll be steadier if you exhale." Ian coached Amanda, standing right behind her.

She nodded stiffly. She knew from experience that all the coaching in the world was not going to improve her performance on the firing range. She hated this. It was this, in particular, that was her greatest hindrance in being accepted at the agency. She had heard staff making bets with Leatherneck on how poorly she would perform this morning. While her pride was stung, she knew that her past history included the very lowest marksmanship that the agency had recorded.

She raised her pistol and took aim, feeling her hands shake as she squeezed the trigger. The shot went wide and didn't even approach the target. She looked away. It was no use. Her hand dropped loosely to her side and she felt Ian take the pistol out of her hand. She took off her sound shielding headphones.

"Come, lass...tell me what you're thinking," Ian coaxed with a winning smile.

"Ian, it's no use...I can't do this." She gazed at the floor, her voice discouraged.

"Fine...tell me why," he continued in a low voice.

"I don't like guns. I don't want to kill anyone...ever. Ian, I couldn't kill someone else." Amanda spoke vehemently.

Ian looked at her thoughtfully and spoke in measured tones. "Well, then, if you're going to have to stop someone, you'll need to shoot to injure. That takes more control and accuracy. Would that be a goal you could live with?"

Amanda's head shot up in surprise. She searched his face for any trace of irony. Everyone at the agency had told her she needed to get past her principles if she wanted to be an effective agent. Ian was the very first to listen and propose an alternative.

"You'd have to have verra, verra good control, indeed, to make sure that you hit nothing vital. But you may need to use a gun someday to protect innocent people or your partner." His face was serious, but his voice softened. "Amanda, your partner has to be able to trust that you can take care of him, or he will always feel he has to take care of you. Someday, that will get him killed."

Amanda knew he was talking about Lee, and not himself. She looked away and took a deep breath. "Then teach me to shoot very, very well, Ian," she said in a low voice, but with absolute trust.

"Very well, then...this time don't aim for the chest. I want you to aim for the left ankle, you won't hit it. Your pistol has a small barrel, and a small barrel makes for a nasty recoil. Even if you hold it very tightly, your shot will rise. Just be aware," he coached.

Amanda slipped the headphones back on and took aim. Her eyes focused on the left ankle of the target, she exhaled and squeezed the trigger. She felt the pistol recoil into her hand, but this time, she felt in control. With surprise she saw that she had neatly put a hole in the left knee of the target. She turned in relief to Ian, "It worked!!"

Ian gave her an arresting grin, "I'm proud of you lass, now do it again...try the right this time."

Amanda repeated her performance, this time the shot went into the lower thigh. At least she knew that the assailant wouldn't be able to run after them, if need be. She was amazed. Under Ian's coaching, she was able to narrow her shots down to the upper arm and the hand. She was confident that she could shoot the gun out of someone's hand...that is if they stood stock still and faced her like her paper target. As they had practiced, agency staff had been filtering in to the back of the room behind the glass partition. Word of Amanda's sudden successes had passed like wildfire through the bullpen.

"Now that is what I'm talking about, Amanda!" Ian grasped both her shoulders and pulled her in for a celebratory hug.

Lee walked in to see Ian embracing Amanda, and bit down on his cheek tightly when he saw Ian pull up Amanda's hand to kiss her right palm. He felt a burning resentment at the private smile they shared. He couldn't hear them, but he could see Ian turn her toward a fresh target and lean in to whisper into her ear. Amanda had never listened to his advice, not like this. He affected nonchalance and laughed and marveled with the other agents over Amanda's sudden success.

Ian and Amanda were unaware of their audience as they continued. This time, Amanda neglected to put on the headphones.

"Amanda," Ian began cautiously. "Most of the time you can shoot to injure, that's all you may ever do. Perhaps, you'll never have to even do that...But you need to know Amanda, under the right circumstances and at the right time...any one of us can kill."

"Not me!" Amanda replied.

"Very well, that man has Jaime and he's going to put him in the back of a car...Jaime's screaming for you, but you can't get to him in time...," he flatly described the scenario as Amanda squeezed the trigger.

Amanda looked in shock to see the bullet hole in the paper target in the left center of the chest. She took a deep breath and aimed at the hand, preparing to squeeze off another round.

Ian continued, "You're in an abandoned building, Lee has been missing for ten minutes. You come around a corner and see him bound to a chair and there is a man holding a gun to his head, he is about to execute Scarecrow..."

Amanda's lips tightened as she squeezed the trigger. Her frame began to shake as she looked up to see the bullet hole mark, right between the eyes. She dropped the gun and her hands covered her face.

The joking and bet-taking silenced behind the glass. No one had thought Amanda had it in her, but apparently her marksmanship was not an issue. Even the most hardened agents realized what it had cost her and decided to head on back to their desks. Her emotional response made them uncomfortable with their own laissez faire attitudes to the weapons they carried. Only Scarecrow remained, watching impassively behind the glass. What would he give to be a fly on the wall to know what Ian had said that made Mrs. Amanda King a crack shot?

"Amanda, lass...," Ian's arms wrapped around her, "we all have it in us, you know.."

"No, it's not that...," her response was choked as she spoke into his chest. "Is it that obvious...to you,.. to everyone...about Lee... am I really that pathetically obvious?"

Ian's face was tucked into the top of her dark curls as he smiled, "Nay, lass...not to everyone here. I just knew, as soon as I saw you together at the pub last night. Ye belong together, but ye'll forgive me for saying, I wish it was me!" He lifted her chin with one finger and brushed a light kiss across her lips.

Her smile was watery as she laughed, "You'd be wishing that more if I were blonde and named Francine!"

His eyebrow lifted in response, "Am I so very obvious, then?"

She laughed softly and rested her forehead back against his chest. "Not to her, anyway. Probably not to anyone else, either...What a fine pair we are, Ian!"

"Aye, that we are!" he laughed, he leaned down to sweep the gun off the floor and rose to put a companionable arm around her shoulders..."Back to the trenches, then?"

Amanda nodded ruefully, she had learned more about herself than about shooting that morning. She felt drained even before their workday truly began. She was startled when she pushed open the glass door to face Lee who was leaning against the rear wall with his hands thrust deep in his pockets.

"Nice shooting," Lee jerked his head at the targets behind the window.

Amanda nodded cautiously, wondering how much of the previous scene he had witnessed.

"You might say you were the inspiration, Lee," Ian quipped behind her.

Amanda whipped her head about, her face frightened and appalled that he would reveal what she worked so hard to hide.

"I reminded Amanda about every time that you've told her stay in the car...Got dramatic results, don't you think?" Ian said, pointing at their very last target. His saturnine face had a biting smile.

Lee responded with a wintry smile of his own for both of them, "So glad to have been of assistance," he bit off before stalking off back to the bullpen.

Amanda exhaled softly, then looked up reproachfully at Ian. "Honestly, Ian...what the Sam Hill do you think you are trying to do?"

"Bring our good friend to his senses," Ian muttered. "Dinna fash yerself, Amanda, I'm in yer corner. What do you see in him, though? That man is a fool! Ye are one in a million."

Amanda shook her head, "Ian, I'm glad you're my friend, because I wouldn't want you for an enemy."

Ian lifted his eyebrow as he escorted her from the room, "Amanda!...I'm hurt...," he pressed his right hand to his heart.

Her laughter floated back to him, "That will be the day...," as they bantered their way back to the bullpen.

-- -- -- -- -- -- --


	4. Chapter 4

"Do you have a good sight line on them

"Do you have a good sight line on them?" Lee queried Francine.

They were ensconced in a UPS truck outside the Visitor's Center on the Mall. Lee was monitoring the wiretap while Francine kept lookout. The brown uniform was not her usual fashion statement.

"Amanda's checking out the map, Ian's checking out the sights," she replied.

"Good."

"The sights appear to include Amanda's backside," she retorted.

Lee scowled back at her. "Save me the commentary, we have enough to worry about."

"Not yet, anyway. No sign of Arden Blaich anywhere yet."

"He'll be here. My source is reliable.", Lee reassured her.

"Not Augie, then?" Francine fired back. She was edgy today. It was quite enough to watch Ian and Amanda mooning over one another at the office. Having the job of witnessing it through binoculars was enough to turn the stomach.

"Aren't you charming today!" Lee responded. "I didn't hear that you'd turned up anything stellar on Scarlet Omen."

"Wait!...," she interrupted him. "I think we have a sighting. Tell them to check at 11:00 o'clock, Blaich is heading straight for the carousel."

Lee spoke urgently into the microphone. "Sighting, 11 o'clock. Get in position."

-- -- -- -- -- -- --

Ian leaned down to mutter to Amanda, "They have a sighting, heading our way. Let's head over to the carousel."

They navigated through the hoards of tourists, forcing a smile at a street performer, stopping to snap photos of the gardens and then the buildings in the distance. They saw Blaich sit down on a bench facing the carousel, back to back with an unidentified man reading a paper. Amanda took photos from every angle, exclaiming over the historic buildings that she was purportedly photographing in the distance. Blaich looked at them carefully, tensed and began to rise.

"Honey, my feet are killing me!" she whined. "I don't want to walk all the way to the Lincoln Memorial. Can't we just get a taxi?" She saw Blaich sink back into his seat, and she let her camera strap fall back to her hip. They had enough photos to make an ID.

"Do you see any taxis around here?" Ian replied with a heavy southern drawl. She was startled at his change of accent, but kept to her role of the cranky tourist wife.

"Can't we just stay the shade for a minute? Will you throw out my soda bottle? I need to buy another one. Isn't there anywhere to get a cold drink around here?" she continued to whine.

Ian sighed, the very picture of a beleaguered husband. He crossed closely past the two men, and deposited her trash in the can next to them, before trudging back to her.

"Honeycake...sometimes you just have to make the best of things!" his voice was persuasive as he returned to her. He was just oozing charm from every pore. "Now you don't want to go back home and tell everyone you were too thirsty to see the Memorial, right? Don't worry, we'll get you a drink somewhere," he continued to reassure her. He muttered into his collar tab, "Bug is planted, start recording."

Amanda continued to protest and whine as they sought shelter in the shade of a copper beech far away from the benches. He continued to reassure and cajole his 'wife' into making the best of things. As they moved away, Ian could see Blaich's mouth move as he talked to the man behind him without facing him. "Nice work, Amanda, but if you were like that all the time, I'd hardly want to be around you!"

She leaned back against the tree trunk and looked up at him. "They're watching us, Ian. I'm not sure they believed us."

"Well let's just convince them we're only thinking about each other, then," Ian said intently, with his arms bracketed around her against the tree.

"What...?" Amanda began, and then was cut off by his swooping down to catch her in an impromptu kiss. Ian never did things by halves, she reflected, as he pulled her up into his arms. She felt tiny in his grasp, and while he was a masterful kisser, his kisses just didn't affect her the same way Lee did. When he was done, she un-wrapped her hands from around his neck and took a deep breath.

Ian took an unsteady breath, as well, "Amanda, I..."

"It's OK, Ian, I know...It's just cover...it doesn't mean anything...I know that...," she babbled.

"What are ye havering on about?...Are they still watching us?" Ian demanded.

"Well, no...," she began.

"Good," he said decisively, "then this one is just for me!" and his head dipped again to take her lips in firm possession. The first kiss had been tame in comparison; this one was a kiss of ownership.

"Ah...," she was wordless when they parted and she stared up at in confusion. "Ian, I thought we agreed..."

He laid a finger on her lips and pointed to his collar mike. Her cheeks flamed as she realized that they had been recorded and observed throughout the whole affair. She was so confused. More than anything she wanted to be done with the day and the mission. Lee was often impossible and insufferable, but he wasn't as complex as the man facing her, who was driven by demons she couldn't hope to understand. At least with Lee, she knew where she stood, or more to the point, where she didn't stand. She shook her head, as if that would clear it. Her voice cracked as she said "I think we'd better head back to the agency if we're done here."

-- -- -- -- -- -- --

"Are we getting a good read on the bug?" Francine asked urgently.

Lee nodded as the tapes caught the details of Scarlet Omen's base of operations and timetable. "They are planning a big move soon. It looks like the lab at Bethesda is the target, again. We should be able to locate the warehouse that's their base from this description...a helicopter pad on the roof with a giant Underwood Devil on it!..Unh,..Looks like Arden is leaving, nothing more coming now...How are Ian and Amanda doing?" he asked.

"Oh pretty well by the lip lock I'm witnessing now...it looks like Amanda has decided to have a Highland fling. Either that, or Ian has decided to test the enthusiasm and stamina of the American housewife!" Francine retorted sourly as she trained her binoculars on them. She stowed the binoculars after a moment. Their quarry had left, and there was no point in watching a kiss that was wasted on someone as passionless as Amanda King. Her fingers went to her mouth as she recalled the firm kiss Ian had pressed on them not so very long ago and she sighed.

Lee glared at her for throwing his comments from his early association with Amanda back in his face. "What the hell?!" Lee switched over to the other headphones to listen to the passionate sound of Ian kissing Amanda senseless. He heard Amanda decry the kiss as nothing but cover, as they themselves had done a number of times. Kissing Amanda never felt like cover, though, no matter what he had said. Then he heard Ian say "this one is just for me..." and his hands clenched in fists. He could hear the throaty sounds Amanda made and knew that he never, ever wanted to have to listen to Amanda kiss another man again. "The next time I see Ian Fraser, I'm going to flatten him," Lee promised.

Francine looked up in surprise at the repressed violence in Lee's voice. She knew Lee was fond and protective of Amanda, but she never thought he'd be jealous on account of the little mouse. What on earth did that little housewife possess that had these two men in such a stew? It was beyond her. "We'd better head back," she said with less than her usual verve.

"Fine." Lee responded, slamming down the headphones. A tic jumped in his cheek. He felt helpless against the red tide of rage rising in him and tried taking a breath to calm down.

"So, looks like our favorite little housewife is expanding her horizons." Francine needled. But one sharp, hot gaze from Scarecrow had her silent once more as they headed back to the agency.

-- -- -- -- -- -- --

Back at the agency, Lee and Francine caught sight of Amanda and Ian in the corridor ahead of them. "Cyclone...I have something for you," Lee called out loudly. As Ian turned around a sharp right hook caught him across the jaw and had him staggering back against the wall.

It would have been followed by a left uppercut, but Ian caught Lee by the wrist. "One, I admit I might owe you. But two I'll hardly allow," Ian looked equally thunderous.

There would have been a full-scale brawl, but Francine opened a door to the adjoining conference room. "Why don't you take it in there, boys, and try not to break anything." Disgust dripped from her voice as she stalked off to the bullpen.

Amanda looked confused and upset, "Fellas, just stop. We have work to do. I'm going to make a report on what we saw to Mr. Melrose. One of us should, anyway," she shrugged and looked away from them both, then closed the conference door behind her as she headed back to the bullpen as well.

"Just what the hell, do you think you are doing Ian?" Lee shot to the point as soon as the door closed.

"What the...? Well, then, Lee...What the hell do you think I was doing?" A feral smile appeared on Ian's lips. Neither man was giving the other any quarter.

Lee paced away from Ian to the other side of the room to prevent himself from wrapping his hands around the taller man's neck. "What do I think?" He spat, turning to face the other agent across the table. "I think you're toying with Amanda and I think she deserves better than that!"

"Quite the dog in the manger, aren't ye Lee?" Ian countered caustically. "Ye don't want Amanda for yourself, but ye willnae see her with anyone else either. Maybe I just appreciate her more than you did."

Ian's barbs shot pretty close to home, which only angered Lee more. "Appreciate her?! I got a pretty good idea of just what you were appreciating out there! And it didn't have much to do with her skills as an agent, either."

"Did you, then Lee? Appreciate her skills as an agent, that is? I was under the impression that you wanted to be partnered with more...professional material," Ian countered.

Lee winced; he was not coming off this 'discussion' as the victor at this rate. Ian continued in a quieter, but no less forceful vein, "I do appreciate her, Lee. Amanda is a lovely, warm and caring woman. And as an agent, she has great instincts and will prove to be a great asset to the agency."

"Ah, yes...I had forgotten. You're determined to be her one-man training camp, aren't you?" Lee responded sarcastically.

"Ye mean because I taught her to shoot? She damn well better learn. I've asked Francine to train her in hand-to-hand, as well," Ian argued. "How could ye face this job day in and day out, Lee, not knowing those things? She's braver than Francine or even my Fiona ever was. I've read yer files, man...she's been kidnapped, assaulted, drugged...and what has she fought back with? I'll tell you: a hose, a lamp and a can of whipped cream! Ye think ye're protecting her from the nastier parts of this job, Lee. What ye're doing is making sure she'll always need ye to protect her...and the day ye can't, she'll end up dead!"

Lee looked up to see the raw pain in Ian's face. His anger evaporated as he realized just how much Ian had lost and why. Ian hadn't been able to protect Fiona. He would do all he could for Amanda, in his own way. Lee couldn't imagine losing Amanda that way perhaps that was why he didn't want to see her become a full fledged agent. "You're right, I'm sorry," his voice rasped in grudging admission.

Ian was surprised at Lee's sudden capitulation and nodded. He continued, "Lee, if ye want Amanda for yerself off the clock, it'll be her ye have to convince, not me. Ye'll not be telling me who to court. I don't think Amanda even believes ye're in this race." He quietly left the room, closing the door behind him.

Lee blew out a forceful breath and raked his left hand through his hair. Amanda for himself? That wasn't what he had been saying, was it? Or, perhaps it was.

-- -- -- -- -- --


	5. Chapter 5

Billy Melrose spoke to his Team in the back of the supply truck

Billy Melrose spoke to his Team in the back of the supply truck. "All right, people, this is a one-shot deal. Our surveillance team indicated that they are in an office in the rear of the warehouse, facing the river. They are heavily armed and may have toxins as well. You know your roles?" he made one final query. "Good, you'll have full back-up, but if we send you all in it could spook them. Our main quarry is Blaich." he reminded them.

Ian, Amanda, Francine and Lee nodded with serious intent. This was show time. Ian turned to Lee and Francine, "Ye both take the right side, Amanda and I will cover the left...Good luck." Lee nodded and Francine followed suit. They clambered out of the truck and quickly took cover under the eaves of the warehouse as they made their way toward the river.

Ian turned with a small smile to Amanda, "Ready?"

Amanda smiled tightly and nodded. "Ready when you are!"

"That's my girl!"

Amanda rolled her eyes at the expression, and Ian feigned injury, "Come now...at least I'm not telling ye to wait in the car!"

She made an aggrieved sound in the back of her throat, and clambered out of the truck first. Ian sighed, Amanda was such fun, why couldn't she be the one he was drawn to? He tamped down his anxiety about Francine being out of his sight. She was a professional, she'd be fine, he reasoned...but then, Fiona had been a professional too...He closed his mind to that train of thought and focused on moving silently as they hugged against the wall of the warehouse.

Amanda gestured to an open window just ahead of them and above their heads. Voices floated from the window.

"We have to strike tonight...we'll never get a chance at it again! Someone's been sniffing around. They'll move the HCRT-3-9 out of there. That will ruin the whole plan!" one man argued.

"No...we should wait for it to quiet down...they're watching too carefully right now, it's too great a risk! They'll decide it's a hoax and relax their guard in a few weeks...We need to be patient!" a tenor voice with a whiny tone replied.

"Will both of you shut up, I'm trying to make a phone call here!" a bass voice cut through their argument. That would be Blaich, thought Ian.

Ian figured their odds, at least three against four. Maybe more. They'd need the element of surprise on their side. He heard a clatter and an explosion on the other side of the building. For all their differences, he and Scarecrow thought alike, he smiled grimly. He listened intently as he heard the panicked sound of the men inside. No...he heard perhaps two other voices.

Ian pointed to a fire escape leading to a small door above them. He then pointed to the window above them, "Cover me...I'm going in!"

Amanda nodded sharply, her eyes wide and intent. She held her pistol in a death grip and quietly clambered on some stacked crates, peering cautiously into the window where the men inside prepared to make their stand. Because of the angle, she couldn't get a full view of the room, but she saw at least three men hidden behind large crates. Ugh..they were well armed, she saw automatic weapons with clips of ammunition beside them. She gazed around the room for any and all things that could be used against them. Sometimes, you just had to use what you had.

Looking up, she saw Ian enter the room stealthily. The men were so concentrated on the door through which they had heard the explosions, they didn't even notice him. He swung his length up onto the support beams that ran across the ceiling. Amanda held her breath, if they noticed him, he had virtually no cover. The door into the warehouse exploded and in the ensuing smoke and confusion, she saw two black figures expertly roll into the room and take cover. Six of them to three agents...she needed to call for backup. She spoke urgently into her collar mike..."Mr. Melrose, sir...they're all in the warehouse, sir. There are six men, heavily armed. They have submachine guns. Requesting backup, sir."

"OK, backup is on their way. Stay where you are...Mrs. King? Amanda?...," Billy Melrose's voice became more urgent as he got no response.

Amanda turned off the mike to make sure she made no tell-tale noise. She couldn't just watch the other agents face those odds. Backup would never arrive in time, the need was now! She pried the window open carefully and slid her slim frame through the narrow window, dropping silently to the ground below. The men were so focused on Francine and Lee's entrance, they never heard her. She heard bullets begin to rip into the crates hiding the two agents. She had to do something. Her glance lit on the engine repair equipment scattered around the floor about her. She leaned forward to snatch a grease gun from the floor below her. As the men began to charge forward, she sprayed the floor in front of them with a stream of grease. Like cartoon characters, three of them slipped and fell. Three others stopped in time; the nearest one was a dark, wiry man who caught her in his sights. Just as he was ready to pull the trigger, a shot rang from above dropping him to the ground. Ian had her back.

Amanda dove for cover behind a barrel. The pistol held tightly in her right hand. As always, she felt a sense of suspended disbelief. How did she, a Family Circle kind of gal end up in shoot outs in abandoned warehouses in the company of criminals and spies? She peered out behind the barrel, and saw a stocky, brawny blonde take aim at the Scarecrow who was focused on the other remaining two. "Lee!" she shouted, her voice cracking in strident urgency. She took aim and shot at the man's hands. She missed, but the whizzing bullet forced the man to back up. In that short interim, Lee had kicked a gun out of the hand of one assailant as Francine took aim at Blaich. As the fight whirled in intensity, the surrounding barrels and crates became dislodged. One crashed down behind Francine knocking her flat.

This time the stocky blonde had an unobstructed opportunity and a sneer pulled across his face as he took aim at Francine. If he was going down, he would take someone with him for the ride. As he went to squeeze the trigger, a tall black form descended from above like an avenging angel between him and the prostrate Francine. Ian staggered back as at least three bullets felled him. Lee whirled and shot their assailant dead to rights.

By the time that the backup team entered, there was only mopping up to do. Amanda ran over to join her Team members who were gathered around Cyclone. Francine looked distraught as she tried to staunch the flow of blood from his wounds.

Amanda snapped her mike back on. "We need a helicopter, stat! Mr. Melrose.. Eagle one has a bird in the NEST! It's Cyclone, sir!", she quickly ran assessing eyes and hands over her partner. "Three bullet wounds that I can count. None in vital areas...but he's losing a lot of blood. We don't have much time!"

She quickly ordered those about her. "Quick. Get his legs up above his heart. We need something for a blanket. He's going into shock." Francine retreated outside in the face of Amanda's medical competence. It wasn't her partner, after all. He was all Amanda's.

Lee moved to assist her, dumbfounded at her authority and confidence. Was this the Amanda he had worked with for nearly three years? She was...an Agent, he realized with sudden clarity.

Her eyes were troubled and her voice shook as she brushed Ian's hair off his face with her bloodied fingers. "We'll get you through this, partner," she whispered, "I promise!"

His eyes barely opened, "Francine...?", his voice was thready.

"She's fine, Ian. You saved her." Amanda reassured him. "She's just outside convincing Mr. Melrose that if the med-flight isn't here in one minute, then they should bring in Air Force One!"

Ian's mouth pulled to one side at her half-hearted joke. "Good."

Lee leaned in on his other side, "Don't you leave us, man...you hear?" Lee's hand gripped Ian's good hand tightly, his voice rough with emotion. These were the moments that Lee truly hated what he did for a living. How many good people had he seen brought down in senseless conflicts like this one?

Ian nodded once, and then his head dropped back as he lost consciousness. His last conscious realization was the distant sound of the whirring of chopper blades approaching.

-- -- -- -- -- --

Amanda slipped quietly into Lee's hospital room in case he was asleep. She should have known better. Lee was irritably pacing the room, waiting for his discharge. He spun around in surprise to face her.

"Hi!" her voice cracked. "I thought you'd want an update...Ian's going to be fine. He's coming out of surgery now."

Relief washed over Scarecrow's face. Despite their competition and their occasional squabbles, he genuinely liked the MI-5 agent. "That's great! How bad was it?"

"He had three gunshot wounds, but they hit him high in the chest and the right shoulder. He saved Francine, though." Her voice faltered.

"How is she doing?", Lee asked.

"Well, she's bandaged up pretty well...just like you," Amanda gestured at Lee's right arm with its cut-away sleeve and the bandages that ran up it from elbow to shoulder. "I think she's just wracked with guilt right now. She won't leave his room, but she needs to get some rest. She got a nasty bump on the head."

"Hey...Amanda, Ian wouldn't have wanted it any other way. He couldn't save Fiona, but he was able to protect both of you" Lee's left hand cupped Amanda's elbow as he gently pulled her in for a hug, It felt so right to hold her in his arms, for once, he didn't want to second guess or question it.

Her breath shuddered out as she let herself lean into his strength and felt his good hand gently rub her back. "I didn't think he was going to make it," her high pitched whisper cracked.

His eyes darkened and his grip unintentionally tightened as he realized how much she had come to care for the Scottish agent. Had he already lost her? He felt her start to pull out of his embrace.

Amanda leaned back and gazed at her fingers resting lightly on Lee's chest. She couldn't make eye contact without revealing her feelings. It was so hard to do when it felt so good to be in his arms. "I'd better get home and check on the boys," she said prosaically. "I'll have to sneak in...What would mother say about this getup?!", her arm made a wide arc gesturing to her blood soaked black jumpsuit.

Lee looked at her soberly. "I'm just glad you're all right. You took a lot of risks back there, Amanda...but...you did a really...great job," he allowed in a stilting voice. "We wouldn't have all made it out of there without your efforts."

Amanda's eyes flew up to his in shock. Lee wondered if his compliments had truly been so few and far between that she would look so surprised to hear them. Maybe Billy was right... perhaps he had been taking Amanda for granted. Perhaps it was time to talk to Billy.

"Th...Thanks," Amanda stuttered. She gave a small smile, but her eyes were radiant as she eased out the door. Lee felt his own face light up in a smile in return. Amanda had that effect on him.

He didn't have long to wait as he heard a knock on the door only moments later. "Come in!" Lee responded. He looked up in surprise to see his section chief.

"How are you, Lee?" Billy asked him, concern crossing his face.

"I'll be better when I can get out of here!" Lee responded acerbically with his customary aversion to hospitals and doctors.

"Then, you'll be glad to hear I have your discharge papers in hand," Billy rustled the papers in his right hand toward Scarecrow. "Ian will be here a bit longer, though."

Guilt and worry crossed Lee's face. "How bad is he, Billy?"

"He'll be fine, Lee...he just may want to stay behind that desk now," Billy smiled gently. "I think taking out Blaich will put some of his demons to rest."

Lee nodded quietly; he could only imagine what Ian had been going through for the past two years. He couldn't imagine how angry he would have been if he had lost Am...he stopped that train of thought. "Billy, there's something else I wanted to talk to you about."

Billy nodded and sat in the visitors chair as he watched Lee begin to pace. "Go ahead."

"I'd like to ask that Amanda be reassigned as my partner," Lee said quietly, rubbing his neck with his left hand.

"Why?" Billy shot back giving Lee no quarter.

"Because she's a good agent with good instincts. Because she's got my back...And even though I like Francine and she's a great agent, it...isn't the same," Lee responded quietly, but without hesitation. "Amanda makes me a better agent."

'And a better man', Billy finished the thought to himself. "Well, if you're willing to tell all that to Amanda, you can ask her if she's willing to work with you again. I do have a number of agents who have already requested to work with her."

Lee could feel his hackles beginning to rise. "Who?!" he asked forcefully.

"Well, there's always Fred," Billy began, he was enjoying seeing the steam build up in Scarecrow. He knew where his favorite agent pair was headed, but it couldn't hurt to give them a nudge. "Conroy has asked, and so has McEvoy. Sutherland and Cartwright have expressed an interest. But the one who's asking the most frequently is Leatherneck. I think he's a bit soft on her, though," he muttered to Lee in a confidential voice.

"Leatherneck?!" Lee's voice strained with incredulity. Good God, he was going to have beat them all off with a stick.

Billy rose heavily to his feet, passed the discharge papers to Lee and smiled broadly as he headed to the door. He pasted a more subdued expression on his face as he turned to face Lee, "You let me know how your conversation with Mrs. King goes, I'll need to make a decision soon." Inside, he rejoiced at the panicked expression on Lee's face. Perhaps his lesson had paid off.

"I'll do that.", Lee responded definitively.

-- -- -- -- -- -- --

A few days later, Lee knocked on another hospital door. "Enter!" he heard. When he eased into the room, he was surprised to see Francine perched on the side of Cyclone's bed. A tell-tale blush lightly stained her cheeks. Ian must have talents he hadn't imagined if he could make Francine blush.

She gently smoothed the sheet as she rose from the side of the bed. "Rest yourself out, don't let him talk you into any more trouble!" she jerked her head toward Lee. She leaned in to kiss Ian's cheek and was startled when he turned his head to find herself in a lip lock instead. Lee enjoyed her discomfiture; it was nice to see that shoe on another foot. He had new material to hassle Francine with now!

Flustered, Francine gathered her purse and exited quickly. Lee swallowed any wisecrack for now. He would have many opportunities later. He held up a bottle in a brown paper bag, "I smuggled this in past the matron." he volunteered passing it to the bed-ridden patient.

Ian reached out to take the bottle and eased it from the bag. His lips pursed in a low whistle. "Not bad! Twenty-four year old, Orkney Isles, single malt whiskey! Lee, there's hope fer ye yet, man!" Ian gestured to the chair next to the bed.

"You gave us quite a scare." Lee said more seriously, lowering himself into the chair and leaning forward.

"Well now, I've given myself quite a scare this week too, then, didn't I?" Ian gave a rusty laugh. "All in all, it could have been worse."

"Thank you...you saved Francine and Amanda when I couldn't." Lee stated flatly and sincerely.

"Och, Lee...we worked as a team. Not a bad one at that. Amanda fairly saved herself, though, didn't she?" Ian baited Lee.

"The grease gun? Yeah...that's pure Amanda. She's one of a kind," Lee broke eye contact and swallowed. He liked Ian well enough, but didn't want to talk about Amanda with him. He had a hard enough time accepting how close the two had become in the past few weeks. "I've asked Billy to partner us again, when you return home," Lee threw the gauntlet down.

Ian suppressed a smile. "It fair bothered you, my working with Amanda, didn't it?"

"It wasn't the working that bothered me," Lee retorted.

Ian tilted his head and considered Lee carefully. Fun was fun, but he knew the American agent was very troubled by Ian's relationship with Amanda. He could throw the man a bone. "She turned me down flat, ye know," Ian volunteered.

Lee pierced Ian with intent hazel eyes. "What?!"

"Amanda... a wonderful woman, ye ken. But she turned me down flat. Not interested, she was." Ian volunteered with far too much rueful humor for his heart to have been involved. "I haven't given up, mind you...they do say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I will be back for a summit in six months..." Ian continued.

Lee's muscles tensed in the effort not to strangle the already injured man. A strange combination of relief and jubilation rushed through his veins. She had turned him down flat! He needed to see her and it couldn't wait. "Six months...huh? That's a long time, Cyclone."

"That depends how you use it, Scarecrow," Ian countered coolly.

"It's about the end of visiting hours," Lee mentioned. "They'll be kicking me out anytime now. That matron could double as a Safety for the Buffalo Bills!"

Ian laughed, "I'll give her your regards, Lee." Watching Lee cross to the door and open it, he said "Please give my regards to Amanda, will ye?"

"What makes you think I'm going to see her now?" Lee asked defensively.

Ian laughed once again, "Because ye're not a fool, Lee. Yer Amanda...she is one of a kind."

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --

Lee parked the silver sports car on a side street and made his way to the back of Amanda's house. It was late enough that the customary clatter of her family's chatter was put to bed. Amanda sat alone in her kitchen on a stool, making lists for the following day. Running a household and working on the side meant that her day never really ended. His eyes drank in the sight of her as she was lost in thought. She really was one of a kind. For all the chatter and the trouble that incessantly followed her, Amanda had a calm center to her. He genuinely only felt at peace when he was near her. Not that he had any intention of telling her that, of all things, tonight. He had a large enough serving of humble pie to eat this evening.

"Psst! Amanda!" he called through her open kitchen window. He watched her flinch in startlement. It was wrong of him, but he did enjoy surprising her.

"Lee, what the Sam Hill do you think you are doing? One of these days you are going to give me a heart attack!" Amanda scolded as she leaned over her sink to face him out the window.

"Do you have a minute?" He smiled coaxingly through the window.

She could resist anything but that dimpled smile. He must have been an awfully cute kid, she mused and headed out the back door. In the past few days the strain seemed to have lessened between them, which was a huge burden off her shoulders. Whatever their differences, having Lee's friendship mattered more to her than she could say. More would be nice, but she wasn't banking on it.

His hand rested in its customary protective spot at the small of her back as he escorted her to the picnic table. His manner was much more conciliatory than the last time they had sat here.

"I've been thinking...," he began, "maybe it was a good thing that Billy partnered you with Cyclone these past few weeks."

Her eyes opened wide in surprise and hurt as she eased into her seat at the picnic table. She hadn't been expecting him to say that. "I see," she said coolly and looked over his shoulder, not able to meet his eyes.

"No, I don't think you do." Lee countered. "Being apart made me see you work with someone else...and I didn't like it."

Amanda looked up and the hurt now registered in her face. He thought she was incompetent, after all.

Lee sighed roughly and ran his left hand through his hair. This wasn't coming out as he had planned it. He sat down opposite her and took her hands in his. "Amanda, you were good...No, you were great. I realized how lucky Cyclone was to work with you...and I realized how much I had come to...depend on you. Francine is a great agent, but I realize now how much I've come to depend on your instincts and your insights."

"And my typing!" Amanda retorted dryly.

Lee gave her a small smile, but his heart wasn't in it. "Well, that too. Look, I know you and Ian have been getting close and that he's taught you a lot," he admitted grudgingly, "But I'm hoping that when he returns home, you'll consider partnering with me again. I know there are other agents who want to work with you, but I'm really hoping you'll give us another chance."

Amanda looked at him incredulously, but Lee didn't see it as his eyes were fixed on their joined hands. Lee was begging her to be his partner?! Her mind could hardly register the irony of the situation.

"I think I could definitely keep that in mind." her voice cracked and her hands squeezed his encouragingly. He looked up into her warm brown eyes and saw the smile on her face. "Lee, all I ever wanted was to be your partner. I just wanted you to treat me like one," she whispered.

"I know...," his voice faltered. She was so lovely, the soft porch light made a halo around the cloud of her curling hair. Amanda could light up a room with a smile and when it was just for him, it made his heart stop. He wanted a lot more than for her to be his partner. But he just wasn't sure about Amanda anymore. Once, way back, he could tell she fancied him. Now, the shoe was on the other foot. He was the one entranced by her beauty, warmth, and yes...by her very complexity. A few short weeks ago, he thought he knew everything there was to know about Amanda King. Having seen her in the past weeks with new eyes, he wasn't sure he knew much about her at all. He certainly wasn't sure if she still thought about him as anything but a co-worker. Yet, somehow he felt that he should know how it would feel to hold her close against him, to drown in her kiss. He shook off the daydream. She had turned down Ian flat, and he was so very sure that she had been having an affair with the Scot. Maybe it wasn't too late for him, after all. And Ian wouldn't be back for at least six months!

Amanda looked away. The heat of Lee's gaze made her pulse jump and brought warmth to her cheeks. How was she going to settle for just working with him when she knew what it was like to be in his arms? She cursed that evening, even as she treasured the memory. It was easier to ignore her attraction when she thought it wasn't returned.

She took a shaky breath. "So, where do we go from here?"

Lee smiled in relief, "I'll talk to Billy in the morning and ask him to reassign us...And I will try, really try, Amanda to give you the respect you have earned from all of us," he finished earnestly. "Say...did you really learn to target shoot by imagining me telling you to stay in the car?", he asked incredulously.

"I'll never tell!" she laughed and placed a forefinger over his lips to shush him.

Lee's hand curled under hers and brought up her hand for a kiss. "I guess I'll have to learn to live with not knowing, or I'll use other methods of interrogation to get the information from you yet!" he smiled with boyish charm and he pressed a kiss on her fingers. It was so good to have their relationship back, and who knew where it would go from there? He had a feeling he would have fun finding out.


	6. Epilogue

Epilogue:

Epilogue:

A week later, Lee was bent over Amanda's shoulder in the bullpen, reading her transcription of a wiretap essential to their new case. He was distracted by the flowery scent of her perfume, and inhaled deeply from his coffee cup to bring himself back into focus. "There's got to be something there, Amanda, I just know it."

"Well, that's all I could make out from their phone conversation," and she tapped a pencil against her lips. "But you know, I kept hearing something in the background. You know, it was just like the bells and whistles from that Arcade that Jaime and Philip keep wanting to go to. Pac Man or Space Invaders...I can't remember which one. Do you think one of them could work at one of the Arcades?" She asked thoughtfully.

Lee shook his head. Amanda did have the most amazing variety of inconsequential knowledge that still amounted to inventive deductive reasoning. "OK partner, we'll check out the arcades." He reached out for her hand to help her to her feet.

She turned to him with a brilliant smile and laid her hand in his. Neither one noticed the tall MI-5 agent enter the bullpen.

"Well now, you two look...busy," Ian teased.

"Ian!! You look wonderful!" Amanda enthused choosing to overlook the arm still resting in a sling. She held him gently and placed a kiss on his cheek. "It's good to have you back!"

"At least for the moment, anyway...I'll be heading back home this afternoon," Ian said nonchalantly.

"Not leaving so soon?" Lee said drily, his hand placed possessively on the small of Amanda's back.

"Och, Lee, I knew you'd be devastated. Try to keep it together, man," Ian retorted. He turned to Amanda, "Have ye seen Frankie, lass?"

"She's in Mr. Melrose's office, finalizing his presentation to Dr. Smythe," Amanda offered.

"Ah, the renowned Dr. Smythe, I've had the pleasure of meeting him once or twice." Ian's voice was as dry as dust.

"What did you think?" Amanda asked in a very low tone.

"I believe I'll do what you American's call taking the Fifth. I may have to work with him yet again someday," Ian's mouth quirked up in his signature half-smile. "I'll be seeing ye then, Amanda - try keeping this lad out of more trouble than he can shoot his way out of, will ye?" He bent down to brush a kiss on her cheek.

"Goodbye, Ian...and thanks so much!" Her voice cracked and her eyes misted. She would miss the handsome agent; he had proved a good friend and mentor.

A muscle jumped in Lee's cheek, "Ian." He held out his hand to shake Ian's briskly.

"Lee." The Scot responded in like suit. "Six months, Lee," Ian reminded him before sauntering over to Billy's office.

"What on earth did he mean by that?" Amanda asked Lee.

"Haven't the faintest." Lee cleared his throat before escorting Amanda from the bullpen.

Ian entered Billy's office without knocking despite the shades being pulled. He wanted the advantage of surprising Francine.

"Excuse me...I am working in here...," her officious tone trailed off as Ian strode into the room and shut the door behind him.

"Now Frankie, is that any way to greet a man who would lay down his life for ye?" Ian began in injured tones.

Francine drew herself up to her full height, in heels, cocking her head to the side. "I believe I have said how very grateful I am, Ian. I will never forget what a sacrifice you..." She began very defensively.

"Ah, quit havering, Frankie. Wasn't a sacrifice and ye be knowing it," Ian responded laconically.

He began crossing the room deliberately, enjoying her discomfiture as she backed up until her legs were against Billy's desk. "There's just one thing I've been needing to take care of before going home," he said in a low voice.

"Well, I've arranged for your tickets, and a ride to the airport, and made sure you won't be flying economy so you should be comfortable enough. MI-5 said that they will have a ride to pick you up at Heathrow...and...," her voice trailed off. She was uncharacteristically flustered by this man every time she dealt with him.

"Thank ye, lass," his voice rumbled with quiet laughter, "but that wasn't what I was thinking of."

Her blue eyes were wide, "Then what was it?" She whispered.

"This." He said decisively before wrapping his good arm around her waist like a steel band, pulling her up into a fiery embrace. She asked for none, and he gave no quarter as he ruthlessly kissed her until her senses fled. She was short of breath and her hands reached back to lean against Billy's desk for support when he was done. "I'll be back in six months. Dinnae forget me, Frankie!" He said with a one-sided smile and a wink before leaving the room and shutting the door behind him.

As if she could, she thought, pressing her fingertips to her parted lips. She realized that she had forgotten to say good-bye. Good Lord, what would he do for an encore in six months time? She allowed herself a slight smile; it might be something to look forward to!

The End.


End file.
